Capturing the Anthropocene - Sensory Ethnograpy in Anthropogenic Biomes

Abstract: In the last decade conceptual considerations of a new geological periodization called the Anthropocene have made scientists reconsider the role of human life on Planet Earth. This thesis examines the epistemological uncertainty concerning the hypothesis of the Anthropocene and analyses the theoretical implications in the human and social sciences hermeneutically. Based on multi-sited sensory ethnography in three examples of anthropogenic biomes in Wałbrzych (Poland), Suså (Denmark) and Copenhagen (Denmark) this is also a methodological demonstration in new ways of perceiving human entanglements in the biosphere. The study describes certain characteristic features of the Anthropocene in audiovisual recordings of anthropogenic landscapes and asks: how do we perceive the ethno-graphic (graphē) features of these landscapes? Conclusively the thesis proposes that anthropogenic landscapes need to be understood beyond bifurcated structures of nature and culture.